The Countrytown Cookoff: Denvah's Cake

After winning this year’s Kix Start Competition, Australian singer-songwriter Denvah unveiled her new single, Do Without, last month. But today, she’s with Countrytown, offering up her go-to cake recipe.

“This song was the result of me stopping and comprehending all that had happened, almost as if the song was a diary entry,” Denvah said about her latest single, which she worked on with producer Jared Adlam (Aleyce Simmonds, Adam Brand).

She continued, “The writing process for this song happened quickly, for I feel the lyrics consist of all the things I never said, so it spilled out from my head to paper rather fast.”

You can listen to Do Without below and check out her go-to cake recipe.

THE COUNTRYTOWN COOKOFF: DENVAH

Throughout my high school years, during my Home Economics classes, we watched countless episodes of Cake Boss- an Italian-American cake shop run by Buddy Valastro, who makes out-of-this-world cakes.

It was there that I became fascinated by all things cake. I started trying to make my own (and they were pretty awful), but after some serious practising, I became the ‘cake person’ for my friends, gifting cakes on birthdays instead of conventional gifts. Now, it’s become a bit of a thing; my friends will send me pictures of cake ideas they love, and I try my best to recreate their groovy ideas.

I’m definitely no Buddy Valastro, but I find it so therapeutic to create a cake for someone I love… it has certainly turned into a love language of mine. This recipe is my go-to and hasn’t failed me yet in all my wacky creations. It tastes like a dream to top it all.

Credit: Denvah

Recipe:

Cake:

• 2 cups plain/all-purpose flour

• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 

• 1/4 tsp salt

• Four large eggs (50 – 55g / 2 oz each), at room temp 

• 1 1/2 cups caster / superfine sugar 

• 115g / 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1.5cm / 1/2” cubes 

• 1 cup milk, full fat 

• 3 tsp vanilla extract

• 3 tsp vegetable oil

Icing:

• 226g full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

• ½ cup (8 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

• 3 cups (360g) icing sugar, plus extra ¼ (30g) if needed

• One teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Credit: Denvah

Cake Method:

1. Whip the eggs and sugar – Beat the eggs with sugar for a whole 7 minutes until thick and glossy; it changes from yellow to white and triples in volume (just over double the depth in the bowl).

2. Gradually add flour – Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together. Then add the egg mixture in three lots, mixing for just five seconds on Speed 1 in between. This should make the flour just incorporated – don’t worry if there are some bits not mixed in.

Hot melted butter in milk – use a microwave or stove to heat milk with the butter until it melts. 

3. Mix some batter into hot milk – this serves two purposes: a) bring down the temperature of the hot milk so it won’t “cook” the eggs (i.e. tempering), and b) it lightens up the density of the hot milk (see above – it becomes foamy) so it blends together faster when added to the rest of the whipped egg mixture. Remember, minimal beating is key so we don’t knock out the cake-rising-bubbles we created in Step 1.

4. Slowly pour milk mixture back into the whipped eggs over 20 seconds on Speed 1. Scrape down sides of bowls, then mix for 10 seconds on Speed 1 – the batter should now be smooth;

5. Pour into two cake pans lined with parchment/baking paper.

7. (Optional) Knock out big air bubbles by dropping the cake pans on the counter three times. This won’t affect the cake-rising bubbles created in Step 1. But it makes large bubbles in the batter rise to the surface and burst.

8. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. The cake will have a slight dome but flattens when it cools.

Icing Method:

1. In a large bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add 3 cups icing sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. If you want the frosting a little thicker, add the extra ¼ cup of icing sugar

2. Cover and store leftover frosting in the fridge for up to 5 days or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the fridge, then beat the frosting for a few seconds so it’s creamy again.

Credit: Denvah